A/N: Remember to review, thanks. Credit to where it's due. :P

He remained still and quiet as she spoke, his rage building quickly yet silently within him.

I was wrong? He cursed to himself. How could I have been wrong? She could not do it, she could not! She tried, damn her! Or had this been a test to prove that I was loyal to her? He turned this notion over in his mind as she vanished from the cave. Naraku cursed everything that had happened and punched through the tatami into the hard cave floor. Had that been it, then? She was testing me? What gives her the right to question me?

He rose to his feet slowly, biting down the inferno of anger and rage that had nearly peaked with him. "So she feels the need to test me, does she... then perhaps she wishes to test my power as well as my loyalty..."

Naraku stood, eyes glowing a fierce crimson. As he walked from the cave, a sword shimmered into his hand, as if bidden there by sheer willpower alone. The blade glowed as he teleported to the cave mouth and headed into the forest, saimyosho at his heels.

If that is truly you, Kanna, then I will do all that I can to make amends... but if you choose to fight me... well, Kagura could tell you the story.

He chuckled to himself at this, though his anger had not died down entirely. I'm sorry, she won't tell you anything. She's dead.

- - - - -

Her feet created barely as sound as she ran through the trees, racing from that place as fast as her legs would carry her. It wasn't fast enough for her tastes, though she had no idea of where she was going, and what she would do when she got there...somewhere...

I'm a fool. A blinded fool. Kagura...everything she said...heh. Whoever thought the wench would be right? Maybe I should have fought. Maybe I should tried to escape. Maybe I should have let him die...

It was this thought that stopped her instantly, her own breathing harsh in her ears. Could she have prevented this, herself? Was this her own fault, in the end? Kanna held her forehead with her hand, her mind buzzing. But she looked back up as the buzzing grew louder, more consistant...

Saimyosho.

Looking into her mirror, she gazed at the images of the insects that followed her...and a sight that chilled her to the bone. Naraku, for certain...heading her way. Surely, he was going to kill her...Kanna frowned, her fear replaced by pure hatred. Lowering the mirror, she turned to face those that chased her, the force of her conviction steeling her with strength.

Let them come...and let them fall.

- - - - -

Naraku dashed through the forest, guided by the motions of the poisonous insects. The saimyosho were ablaze with messages, and he quickly discovered she was directly ahead of him. He broke through a thicket, and there she was... staring back at him, determination burning in her eyes. He hadn't expected her to stop... and particularly not so soon. Naraku faced Kanna and held his ground, no where to truly go now.

"Kanna... is that truly you? How am I to be certain you are who you say you are?"

The saimyosho gathered nearby, many smaller clouds gathering together around the two figures. They flittered about from a distance, watching and waiting for their next order.

There must be something I can do, Naraku thought to himself. There must be a way to settle this once and for all.

She never took her eyes from him, not for a moment. Her arms slowly wrapped around herself, trying her hardest to cover herself, though the move was based more upon instinct than anything else. Once again her insides curled into attack mode, though she realized all too late that her katana was back at the cave.

At his question, she let out a cry of frustration. "Am I the real Kanna?" she asked, halfway between exasperated and mocking. "You have some gall, you know that?"

No more. NO MORE. After all this time of silence, I will not take it any more.

Kanna walked right up to him, no longer caring about her safety. "Who would be able to use the mirror? Or did I just not move fast enough for you? Oh yes...I believe I was still paralyzed from a healing charm I used on you."

Never did her voice raise beyond that of a low growl, yet her words were filled with every drop of venom she could summon. "Who would have known to use your heart to restore you? Who would have spent two months playing connect the dots with demon bodies to even try? Who would have even bothered? You were DEAD, Naraku! You were gone. They celebrated. No one cared."

Her gaze softened a moment, her hand raising and gently touched the Naraku's face. "Except...I know how to use the mirror. I kept you heart safe. I spent two months trying, and...I cared."

Jerking her hand back to her side, she turned away and walked off a few paces. Kanna stopped, glancing over her shoulder. She was tired, her power still not restored despite the energy of a few souls she'd stored in her mirror...just in case. A world-weary look replaced the hatred, though with it came betrayl and hurt.

"A bit of poetic justice, isn't it...?" she murmured. "Just like your miasma...you kill everything you touch. Why should I be any different?"

With that, she began to leave, saying her final words over her shoulder. "You've got what you wanted, I guess. You don't need me...If I see InuYasha, I won't tell him of you before he kills me. That is...if you even understand...nevermind."

Kanna walked towards the circle of the Saimyosho, the last thing between her and freedom. "Until then...stay away from me, or have your insects and marionette stab me in the back like a worthless traitor. It would be an ironic end, indeed."

He gazed across the field at her, the wind whipping his hair across his face. The emotion was gone, yet the struggle remains etched into his eyes. The moonlight cast the only shadows upon the grass, as all life has vanished from this clearing already; the emotion was gone, but it had been there before. Where fury had been, only a cold, detached demon remained. His blade was sheathed, but it hung to the side as though it would jump into his hand of its free will. The emotion was gone, but the pain remained.

"So this was your intention then? You spare my life, restore my power, and draw me toward you... for this? I'm not sure whether to be hurt by your betrayal or proud; even your sister didn't have the gall to do as you've done. I would applaud your accomplishments if I felt they would come to anything."

The emotion was gone, but the hatred shown brighter than the moon.

I don't want to feel this way, her soul cried. But what else can I feel? What do I do when I feel so surrounded by trechery? My heart says to flee, yet I cannot. My mind says to fight, yet I cannot. My entire body wishes to hate, for what else can I do but despise him...? When one cannot run nor battle, isn't the only option left to hate...?

"Now I know what it's like," she said qiuetly, more to herself than anyone, as she thought of Kikyou. "To be left with only your anger and spite. Such is the end result of deciet."

It seemed only too easy to stand and listen as his words battered at her like the ocean crashed against the sand. Maybe, in a time long past, she would have cried out in protest or launched back a chorus of angry retorts. Maybe, in a time long past, she would have pleaded for his understanding, for his forgiveness. And maybe, just maybe, she would have cared enough to assure him of her obediance by taking on a member of the Inu-Tachi for the sake of proving herself. But this was not a long time past; it was a cruel present that would have torn her heart apart, had her heart any feelings left to show. The Kanna of the past was no more.

Raising her gaze from the ground, slowly upwards to meet his, this Kanna glared back with a calculated expression that held no affection, but the utmost disdain. No longer the selfless desire to please, but only the desire to rend him apart as a hawk would slash apart a snake. Her obsidean eyes were as calm as the trees before a storm, reflecting back at him a chilling ruthlessness. This Kanna was ready for war.

"Think what you like, as you always have," she replied smoothly, voice laced with spite. "Pain and pride mean nothing to me. As for my Kagura...she was too weak to stand against you...on her own. I once thought myself the same...but I have learned otherwise."

Kanna laughed quietly, though there was no humor in her tone. Arching an eyebrow, she locked her gaze on him. "Would you like to find out for yourself, master?" she added mockingly. "Or are you scared?"